AGENT AGENDA ONLINE   January-March 2010
  From SFM-The Work Comp Experts. News for insurance professionals.


 
  TOP STORIES  
  WCRA assessment: A primer on the new line item appearing on Minnesota policies  
 

Beginning with policies effective Jan. 1, 2010, a line item called "WCRA Assessment" appears in the premium section of the policy Information Page. State regulators have ordered all Minnesota workers’ compensation insurers to collect the assessment on behalf of the Minnesota Workers’ Compensation Reinsurance Association.

 
  SFM expands in Iowa and Nebraska, adds field underwriter  
  SFM recently expanded direct operations in Iowa and Nebraska with the addition of Des Moines-based staff and agency appointments.  
  Penguin campaign helps employers avoid slips and falls  
 

“Walk like a penguin.” That’s the theme around which SFM has built a campaign to help employers avoid expensive slip-and-fall injuries this winter.

 
  2009: Policy retention remains strong  
 

93 percent of SFM’s policyholders renewed in 2009, sustaining SFM’s consistently high performance over the years in retaining policyholders. Direct written premium totaled about $100 million, according to preliminary financials.

 
  FROM THE PRESIDENT AND CEO
 
  With Kaitala's retirement, SFM celebrates a personal milestone  
  SFM wrote its first workers’ comp policy back in 1984. That same year State Fund Mutual Insurance Company also convinced Frances Kaitala to join its fledgling operation as an underwriting manager. Over the next 25 years, her name would become synonymous with State Fund Mutual and with excellence in Minnesota workers’ compensation.  
  BRIEFS  
  New 2009 agency contracts  
  SFM begins servicing pool  
  Scholarships available to children of injured workers  
  Updated website launched  
  Wellness resources for clients  
  Online reporting hits record  
  Sandilla leads SBU operations  
  SFM addresses contractors  
  20 percent commission on new policies up to $10,000 in premium  
  LEGAL ADVICE  
  From "Up North" by SFM's Duluth-based legal counsel  
  FMLA leave and the flu  
  New ADA regulations pending  
  Recent settlement a good reminder to examine "bright line" leave policies  
     
  CALENDAR

Feb. 9


April 20

April 20

"Safety committees: Create one with purpose or boost yours for results" workshop, Bloomington, Minn.

"Responding to work injuries" seminar, Bloomington, Minn.

"Return-to-work" seminar, Bloomington, Minn.


 
 

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VICE PRESIDENT STRATEGIC BUSINESS OPERATIONS Frances M. Kaitala, EDITOR Mark A. Ladwig, ASSISTANT EDITOR Jennifer Kopp, Staff Writer Brook Matthiesen, PRODUCTION Sara Goese, Donna Lyons

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